Sports and notable people in Prince George, BC

For a city of its size, Prince George punches well above its weight in sport. Long winters make it a hockey and Nordic skiing town, its arenas have hosted national and world championships, and plenty of Olympians and NHL players have passed through its rinks. Here is a guide to the teams, the venues and some of the people who have put Prince George on the map.

Hockey

Prince George Cougars (WHL)

The Cougars play major junior hockey in the Western Hockey League. The franchise began in Victoria in 1971 and moved to Prince George in 1994, becoming the most northerly team in the Canadian Hockey League. After a first season at the old Coliseum, they moved into the new Multiplex, now the CN Centre.

Highlights:

• Local owners, including former Cougars Dan Hamhuis and Eric Brewer, bought the team in 2014 to keep it in Prince George.
• The team won its first B.C. Division title in 2016–17.
• 2023–24 was the best season in franchise history: a record 49 wins and 102 points, first place in the Western Conference and a run to the conference final.
• Alumni who reached the NHL include Zdeno Chára and Eric Brewer, who were teammates here in the mid-1990s, and Dan Hamhuis.

Prince George Spruce Kings (BCHL)

The Spruce Kings were founded in 1972 and joined the BC Hockey League in 1996. They play at Kopar Memorial Arena, which seats about 2,100 fans. In 2007 they hosted the national junior A championship, then called the Royal Bank Cup, and won a semifinal that went to five overtimes, the longest game in the tournament’s history. In 2018–19 they won their first Fred Page Cup as BCHL champions.

Venues

• CN Centre. Opened in 1995 and seating just under 6,000, it is northern BC’s largest sports and entertainment arena. It hosted events at the 2015 Canada Winter Games and the 2022 World Women’s Curling Championship, as well as major concerts. It connects with the Kin Centre arenas to form a four-rink complex.
• Kopar Memorial Arena. Home of the Spruce Kings.
• Northern Sport Centre at UNBC. An indoor field house and fitness centre used by students and the public.
• Prince George Aquatic Centre. The city’s main competitive pool, closed for a major renovation from January 2026 until early 2028. Public swimming has moved to the Canfor Leisure Pool downtown.
• Otway Nordic Centre. Run by the Caledonia Nordic Ski Club, with about 55 km of groomed trails, roughly 10 km lit for night skiing, and a 30-lane biathlon range. See winter activities.
• Citizen Field, a baseball diamond opened in 2006, and the Prince George Golf and Curling Club.

The 2015 Canada Winter Games

To celebrate its 100th anniversary, Prince George hosted the 2015 Canada Winter Games from February into early March. Thousands of young athletes from every province and territory competed in venues across the city, from the CN Centre to the trails at Otway Nordic Centre. The Lheidli T’enneh were the first official host First Nation in Canada Games history. The Games left behind upgraded facilities and a downtown gathering place, Canada Games Plaza.

The city’s multi-sport roots go back further. In 1978 it hosted the Northern BC Winter Games, organized by a young John Furlong, who went on to lead the Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic organizing committee.

Everyday sport and recreation

• Iceman. A February multisport race, held since 1988, combining skiing, running, skating and swimming.
• Curling, minor hockey and figure skating fill the city’s arenas all winter.
• Mountain biking and hiking on Tabor Mountain, Cranbrook Hill and in Forests for the World.
• UNBC Timberwolves basketball and soccer teams compete in U Sports’ Canada West conference.
• Motor sports at the PGARA Speedway, known for its hit-to-pass races.

The city’s most famous resident: Mr. PG

No list of Prince George personalities is complete without Mr. PG, the city’s 8-metre forestry mascot. Built in 1960 and standing guard at the junction of Highways 16 and 97 since 1970, he was trademarked by the City in 1985 and featured on a Canada Post stamp in 2009. Read his full story in the history of Prince George.

Notable people with Prince George roots

This is a short list of people born in, raised in or strongly associated with Prince George.

Sport

• Jon Cooper, NHL head coach who led the Tampa Bay Lightning to two Stanley Cups.
• Meryeta O’Dine, Olympic bronze medallist in snowboard cross.
• Alyxandria Treasure, high jumper on Canada’s 2016 Olympic team.
• Daryl Reaugh, former NHL goaltender and longtime hockey broadcaster.
• Darcy Rota and Turner Stevenson, former NHL forwards.

Arts and culture

• Grace Dove, actor, known for The Revenant.
• Jonathan Crow, violinist and concertmaster of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra.
• Denise Chong, author of The Concubine’s Children, who grew up in Prince George.
• Barry McKinnon, Gillian Wigmore and George Sipos, poets and writers.
• Kym Gouchie and Marcel Gagnon, Lheidli T’enneh musicians.

Public life

• John Furlong, sports administrator and head of VANOC.
• Bridget Moran, social worker, activist and author.
• Barry Seymour, former chief of the Lheidli T’enneh.

Related

• Arts and culture in Prince George
• Things to do in Prince George
• Winter activities